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The Iowa Hawkeyes seek a win against the No.3 Iowa State Cyclones on Thursday night. Local bragging rights are up for grabs when they meet, and we name the best bets in our latest NCAAB betting picks.
- What: 2024/25 Men’s College Basketball
- Who: Iowa Hawkeyes vs. Iowa State Cyclones
- Where: Carver-Hawkeye Arena, Iowa City, Iowa
- When: Thursday, December 12th, 2024
- Tip-Off: 7.30 pm. ET
The Iowa Hawkeyes will host the Iowa State Cyclones for the Cy-Hawk game at the Carver-Hawkeye Arena.
The Cyclones won last year’s matchup by a massive 25-point margin, so the Hawkeyes will be desperate for revenge on Thursday with the venues switched in their favor.
The Hawkeyes are 7-2 overall this season and 1-1 in the Big Ten. They are 6-0 at home, but more recently, Iowa has won two and lost two of their last four.
The Iowa State Cyclones have an overall record of 7-1 this season and 1-0 in the Big 12. The Cyclones are on a four-match winning streak.
When the latest AP Top 25 rankings were announced on Monday, the Cyclones had lept three places from No.6 to No.3. Iowa State started the season at No.5.
Iowa vs. Iowa State Match Betting
Having a home-court advantage hasn’t resulted in the Hawkeyes being made favorites by the best college basketball betting sites.
The No.3 rated Iowa State Cyclones are the favorites on the money line at -245, with the Iowa Hawkeyes at +200.
On the spread line, the Hawkeyes are receiving a 6-point start. To win with the spread, the Iowa Hawkeyes are -110. The Iowa State Cyclones are -110 to win and cover the 6-point spread.
The total line is set at 160. Over and under are both -110.
The Cyclones won last year’s battle 90-65. That match was played at the Cyclones’ Hilton Coliseum home. The scoreline would have fallen five points short of the total line set for this year’s matchup.
You can check out more Iowa Hawkeyes vs. Iowa State Cyclones NCAAB betting lines on our college basketball betting table. Our NCAAB odds are from the best college basketball betting sites.
| Iowa vs. Iowa State |  |  |  |
| Iowa | +200 | +200 | +200 |
| Iowa State | -245 | -245 | -245 |
| Iowa (+6) | -110 | -110 | -110 |
| Iowa State (-6) | -110 | -110 | -110 |
| Over 160 | -110 | -110 | -110 |
| Under 160 | -110 | -110 | -110 |
Iowa Hawkeyes
The Hawkeyes dropped an 85-83 decision against Michigan in their most recent fixture. The conference loss leaves Iowa 1-1 in the Big 10 and 7-2 overall.
The Hawkeyes are +4500 to win the Big Ten regular season, with Michigan favored at +350, so to push the Wolverines so close is a credit to head coach Fran McCaffery and his team.
McCaffery is now in his 15th season as Iowa’s head coach. The previous campaign was a difficult one, with the Hawkeyes finishing T6 in the Big Ten with a 10-10 conference record, and 19-15 overall.
The current season started with five wins. The winning start ended with a 77-69 defeat to Utah State.
The Hawkeyes then bounced back with a commanding 110-77 victory over USC Upstate, which was followed by a one-point win over Northwestern (80-79) last week, and the loss to Michigan on Saturday.
Iowa State Cyclones
The Cyclones started the season as one of the favorites to win the 2025 National Championship match. Iowa State is currently +1800 to win the NCAA Tournament, putting them in the top ten favorites, but way behind favorites Auburn at +800.
In the betting to win the Big 12 regular season, the Cyclones are the second favorites at +230. The Big 12 betting is tight. The favorites are Houston at +210, with Kansas third at +300.
Head coach T.J Otzelberger led the Cyclones to the Sweet Sixteen in the 2024 NCAA Tournament, where they were defeated 72-69 by Illinois. The Cyclones finished second in the regular season with a 13-5 record.
Otzelberger is now in his fourth season in charge of Iowa State. Things started well this term with three successive wins. But when Iowa faced the Auburn Tigers in their biggest test of the season, they fell narrowly short, losing 83-81.
NO. 4 AUBURN WINS A THRILLER ‼️
The Tigers come ALL the way back to take down No. 5 Iowa State in the Maui Invitational quarterfinals 🐅 pic.twitter.com/7g9EqJ5Bpr
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) November 26, 2024
Possibly the most alarming aspect of that defeat is that Iowa State held a 16-point lead (49-33) at the halfway stage. Iowa had no answers to the Tigers in the second half.
Since that setback, Iowa has won four in a row, including an impressive nine-point victory (80-71) over No.6 Marquette last Thursday.
Iowa Hawkeyes vs. Iowa State Cyclones Betting Picks
The Hawkeyes warmed up for the Cy-Hawk showdown by losing a tight conference battle on the road to Michigan. They did start as the 9.5-point underdogs, so failing by just a two-point margin will have to be taken as a minor success.
The short trip across town is Iowa State’s first true road game of the season. The Cyclones’ most recent performance was a convincing win (100-58) over Jackson State. They easily covered a 36.5-point spread.
The only fixture the Cyclones have lost this season was against Auburn. Iowa State may have had a poor second half in that match, but they were in a commanding lead at the halfway stage and only lost the game to the favorites to win the 2025 NCAA Championship by two points.
The Cyclones should have too much for their cross-city rivals. They look too short on the money line at -245, so we are putting our faith in them to cover the six points.
Our pick is for the Iowa State Cyclones to win and cover the spread.
See below our list of the best offshore sportsbooks for US bettors in 2024 and choose the one that suits you best:
Sports Betting Sites 